Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputies for raising this matter and I propose to take Questions Nos. 52, 63 and 78 together.

My Department continues to support the development of remote working hubs throughout the country. Our Rural Future commits to investing significantly in remote working facilities and to examining the potential to introduce specific incentives to encourage remote workers to relocate to rural areas, as part of budget 2022. I have instructed my officials to examine options for such an incentive mechanism, building on the connected hubs network, in particular. It is critical this is done in the right and responsible way and a number of approaches are currently under consideration.

To date, more than €83 million has been provided by my Department, through various funding streams, to support the development of digital hubs and remote working facilities. The rural regeneration and development fund and the town and village renewal scheme both support the establishment of digital hubs. Under this year's schemes, projects that bring vacant properties in town centres back into use as remote working hubs or repurposed existing community or publicly owned buildings in town and village centres to facilitate remote working were eligible for funding.

My Department also supports the development of the connected hubs network, found at connectedhubs.ie. Some 170 hubs are live on the platform, with this number growing every week. Earlier this year, I also awarded almost €9 million in funding through the connected hubs funding stream to further support hubs throughout the country. The development of a national hubs network is a key commitment in Our Rural Future and I am committed to continuing my Department's support for the development of remote working hubs, in recognition of the vital role they can play in our post-Covid recovery.

I absolutely believe in remote working or, connected working, as I prefer to call it. It is a game changer for rural Ireland. Before the pandemic, remote working was just a concept or an aspiration. Now, because of Covid, it is an everyday working reality for thousands of workers. I want to support people who want to live and work in their own community. Obviously, the public health advice is again that if one can work from home, one should.

However, there are huge opportunities here for regional development. Many major multinational companies have told their staff they can work remotely for the long term and that is very positive. I know there is one multinational in the Deputy's county of Cork. A huge part its workforce is working remotely and that is part of its policy. That is the way forward and we in the Department want to support this.

There are many benefits, across the board, to remote working. We know them all. People live and work in their locality. It enables young people to avail of cheaper house prices in the country and less time spent commuting, which is also good for the environment. The reality is if one is an office worker and has good phone and broadband coverage, which is guaranteed in these remote working spaces, one can do the same job. I will be a bit parochial here - one can do the same job in Ballybay as in Ballsbridge. We need to seize the momentum around remote working. My Department is investing in the development of remote working hubs through schemes such as the €1 billion rural regeneration and development fund, the town and village renewal scheme and the connected hubs fund.

As the Deputy knows, there are plenty of examples of old buildings in our town centres that can be renovated and used as hubs. There are a number of investments in north-west Cork. There is the gteic i mBéal Átha an Ghaorthaidh, which got €30,000 for the connected hubs funding there. Macroom enterprise centre got €68,000 and that is just to name a couple. Of course, the digital innovation hubs strategy was in the rural regeneration and development fund, RRDF, for Cork, of €206,000 and in Skibereen, the Ludgate Hub, with which I know Deputy Moynihan is very familiar, got €152,000. We used some of that funding to help kit out their premises, buy furniture and improve their facilities. I am on the same page as the Deputy in that I am absolutely committed to remote working.

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